The European Union’s public health agency said today that more than half of all COVID-19 infections in Europe in the coming months could be the Omicron variant, but there have been no severe cases so far.
This estimate may lend credence to preliminary information that Omicron is more infectious than Delta. Prior to Omicron, Delta was considered the most infectious of the major variants of COVID-19.
There is no definitive evidence of the transmissible ability of Omicron, but WHO epidemic prevention expert Maria van Kerkhove said yesterday that the WHO expected data within days.
Omicron could replace Delta by the end of January, jean-Francois Delfraissy, the French government’s chief scientific adviser, said yesterday.
According to the ECDC, 79 cases of infection with the Omicron variant have been reported in Europe to date. Half of these cases were asymptomatic and the other half had only mild symptoms, with no severe illness, hospitalization or death.
